Program Description

Election administration in western North Carolina has a problem. The average age
of poll workers in Buncombe County, NC for the 2008 elections was 60. In Jackson
County, NC, it was 68. In addition to questions about the representativeness of poll
workers drawn overwhelmingly from older residents, there are not enough younger people
being trained to replace this increasingly aging poll worker population.

In 2009, to help solve the problem, the Public Policy Institute helped coordinate
the recruitment of students to serve in Jackson and Buncombe county precincts for
the 2009 and 2010 elections. For more information about our ongoing efforts, go to: